Surviving in a World Teeming with Monsters with the Useless Skill 【Everyday Items Master】! I Was Just Hunting Wild Animals with a Crowbar, So Why Is Everyone Screaming It's an S-Rank Monster? - 79

Chapter 79: Carelessness, Caution, and Then…

ーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーー

“Carelessness” and “letting your guard down” are the same. “Caution” and “closing off your heart” are the same too. Having one at zero and the other at a hundred is never good in any situation. Being too careless or too cautious never leads to good results. But if I had to choose one, I’d go with being too careless, since it’s easier to overturn. Because—

“Carelessness can be overturned with just one good surprise.”

Saying that, I landed beneath the stage. Smiling vaguely, I glanced around. The crowd had surrounded me, glaring with numbers on their side.

“Waaow! Tacchan, you’ve got guts! But are you gonna be okay? With that many, you’re gonna get totally beaten up!”

Ui hopped around, half-worried and half-high energy, warning me. Her rather large breasts bounced vertically along with her bunny ears. Trying not to look too directly, I replied.

“Well, I’ll try not to let too many people get hurt.”

“The only one getting hurt is no one but you, dumbass!”

The one who shouted and came swinging was a young guy from the crowd. Charging at me solo with a raised fist—pretty gutsy. I nudged Ui back and said.

“No weapon? How bold of you.”

As I said that, I grabbed the claws and tape of the measuring tape and swung. The round case bent with a whip, and the metal tape extended. It curled and wrapped around the young guy’s arm, making him shout in confusion.

“Huh? So what!?”

He still didn’t stop and kept running at me, so I ducked under his punch as I passed by and swung my arm. Caught in the tape, his arm twisted, flipping him through the air.

“Uwah—gyah!”

He spun once and crashed to the ground on his back. I rewound the tape with a flick of my wrist, then casually played with it like spinning a pen.

“Yep, just as I thought. It can be used like this. …Hm?”

Looking around, everyone had gone silent, staring at me like they didn’t understand what just happened.

“…Eh? Tacchan, you’re strong~…?”

Ui had climbed back onto the stage to take refuge. I ignored her comment and addressed the crowd.

“Huh? None of you are coming at me? I was planning to take you all on at once.”

That one line… lit a fire under the whole crowd.

“You bastard, don’t screw with us!”

“Don’t get cocky over some cheap magic trick!”

“Hahaha! Yeah, come on! If we’re gonna have fun, let’s all have fun together!”

Saying that, I unleashed the tape measure toward the charging mass.

【Infinite Tape Measure】

The tape snaked through the crowd, metal tape folding and weaving in a complex pattern.

Finally, it wrapped around one person’s leg.

“Wait, me—!?”

A boy who had just started running at me from a distance cried out.

“Nope. From him to you—all of you.”

I yanked the tape hard. Like casting a net, the members of the Ferocious Shark Gang heading my way had their legs pulled out from under them in all directions.

“Uwoaaahhh!?”

“Crapppp!”

“My legs!?”

“Man, this is fun.”

Like dominoes, they all toppled over from the sheer density of the group. Most were now down and unable to move. Avoiding the first guy who fell toward me, I stepped across the backs of the fallen, heading forward as the tape rewound into my hand. About ten seconds had passed since the fight began. I scanned the area to assess the remaining hostility and fear.

“H-he’s crazy strong…”

“Don’t screw with us, old man! Quit treating us like jokes!”

Their reaction was just as I expected, I nodded to myself.

“At this point, about half lose the will to fight. The other half are still going strong.”

The clever ones—or the cowardly ones like me—back down here. And once that happens, you have to be nice to them. After all, they’re going to be our allies now. I want them to respect me just enough to stay wary, but I don’t need hatred or resentment.

“Alright, move it, move it. No need to trample your friends to fight.”

With a wave of my hand, the crowd parted in areas full of the more timid types. I dropped down there. No one tried to hit me. In front of me was a guy clearly scared of me. So I smiled and said.

“Do you want to surrender? I don’t plan on attacking anyone who already surrendered.”

“Y-yeah. I surrender.”

“Nice fight. High five.”

“Eh? H-high five…?”

I exchanged a high five with him. He just stared at the hand that had touched mine. Ignoring that, I called out to everyone else.

“Alright, step back so it doesn’t get dangerous. Anyone else surrendering, move to the back! Oh, and help carry off the ones who are down while you’re at it!”

Then, like a wave behind me, those who surrendered picked up the fallen and started retreating. The downed Ferocious Shark Gang members groaned as they were dragged away. The center cleared. Those without the will to fight clustered at the edges, and those still ready to go remained, surrounding me.

“Oh, we’ve got a pretty solid bunch left.”

“…Hey, you fakies. You’re actually kinda strong, huh?”

“I wouldn’t say I’m that strong…”

“Hah!? Sh-shut up! Don’t talk back! If I say you’re strong, then you’re strong!”

What a unique way to silence someone. I had to admire it.

“But y’know… You made fools of us. So—HEY!”

At his shout, the remaining members drew their weapons. Swords, spears, axes—close-combat stuff suited for monsters. No guns, it seemed. Probably smart; too much risk of friendly fire in this environment.

“We’re going all out! With weapons, for real this time!”

One of them swung down an axe as he shouted. I shrugged and swung my measuring tape.

“I’ve been serious from the start. The ones underestimating things weren’t me—it was you guys.”

“What!?”

The tape wrapped around the guy’s axe. But it didn’t stop there.

“Wha-!?”

“Mine too!?”

“No way—it’s not stopping!”

“Is he trying to take everyone’s weapons!?”

The tape continued to tangle around all their weapons, extending ever outward. Eventually, the main body of the tape latched onto the entrance door and stopped. Most of the gang’s weapons were suspended mid-air, stuck.

“D-dammit!”

“I can’t move it!”

Letting go of the tape, I walked forward barehanded and poked the nearest guy’s cheek.

“Hey, are you still going?”

“Of course I am!”

He gave up on his weapon and went for a punch. I grabbed his arm and flipped him lightly. Nothing fancy—just a basic over-the-shoulder throw.

“Gah!”

He slammed into the ground and couldn’t move. The remaining gang members who still had the will to fight in them all widened their eyes, staring at me. To all of them, I said.

“If you’ve still got the will to fight, come at me. If you surrender, then just stay right where you are.”

What came charging at me was about half of those who had been struggling to move their weapons.

“Damn youuuuuuuuuu!”

“No way I’m backing down nowwwwwww!”

“You idiotttttttt!”

“Ahh, so full of energy… I wish I could go back to the me five years ago too…”

Longing for my youth, I used judo techniques to effortlessly toss the members of the Ferocious Shark Gang around one after another. And in the end, only one person remained standing. He didn’t seem to be carrying a weapon from the start. Instead, his stance was clearly that of a martial artist.

“A hand-to-hand combat skill user, huh?”

When I guessed aloud, the last one nodded.

“Right on. In this situation, I’m the strongest one here.”

“Alright then, bring it on.”

“Raaaaaaahhhhhh!”

He charged straight at me with hand-to-hand combat skill. His movements were tight—no openings at all.

Hmm, I might not be able to win unarmed.

Thinking again about the advantage of skills, I stepped back and touched something behind me. Specifically, the metal tape of a measuring reel that had been spread all around.

【Powerful Retraction】

The previously taut measuring tape suddenly went slack, coiling up rapidly and dragging a bunch of weapons with it. The weapons slammed into the round metal housing of the reel, bounced off, and scattered down from the air. It was like a rain of weapons.

“W-what the!?”

The martial artist froze at the strange turn of events. Stunned, he warily eyed the falling weapons. And that meant he left a huge opening in his guard against me. Dodging the falling weapons, I walked up and tapped the martial artist on the arm.

“Tag, you’re it.”

“D-Dammit—”

“Too slow.”

I flung him hard. He hit the ground back-first with a thud and lost his breath. But as expected of a martial artist—he immediately started getting back up. So I pressed the metal tape of the measuring reel to his neck.

“Kh…!”

“Shall we end it here?”

“…Yeah, I lost.”

“Got it. Nice fight.”

I high-fived the martial artist. Then I stood up and helped him to his feet. Looking back, what lay behind me was a heap of bodies—though not a drop of blood had been spilled.

Around the edges stood those who had quickly lost their will to fight. A little further in were the ones who had lost their weapons and raised their hands in surrender. At the center, the ones I had thrown around groaned on the ground, and in between them, weapons were stabbed into the ground.

Watching the whole battle unfold, Shachimaru said from the stage.

“…That really woke me up. My judgment was spot on. Crow-… Aniki, you’re way too strong.”

I frowned at the impolite phrasing.

“Don’t be stupid. Guys with proper skills are way stronger than me. Like a Sword Saint or something.”

“Onii-sama! Onii-sama, that was amazing! So amazing, amazing, amazing!”

“Tacchan, you’re amaaazing! Woooooow!”

Luna and Ui were holding hands and bouncing up and down. Looking at them like that, I was slightly proud of myself. 

ーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーー